Finally got it.

[START2]

Hi guys. I haven't posted anything lately. Just sort of been lurking. My last posts had me dealing with a custody issue. I'm happy to say that my fiance has received custody. It was quite an ordeal but we got the job accomplished. As many of you are aware, Ukr. has very different laws regarding this than we do. Usually when a divorce is granted the children stay with the mom and the dad visits from time to time but in many cases, never.  For the woman to travel abroad  she needs at least one of two things. (and this is specific to Ukr.) The ex husbands written and notarized permission to immigrate or a court document giving the mom custody. In the case of Ukr., it really isn't custody as we think of it. It actually is a denial of any rights of the dad. Or maybe I should say parent. this can take anywhere from 6 months to a year if the ex wants to contest it. And even at that, the other parent better be able to prove that there has been no interest or support in the child. At this first level, the court will give the absent parent countless opportunites to appear in court even if that parent refuses to show up. The court has the option to drag the absent to court using the police  if needed depending on how the judge views it all. If that parent still refuses to appear, the in-laws  can even  delay proceedings by protesting. Then, there is also a child advocate person that does interviews with friends and relatives and officials from the school the child attends. That is usually the deciding factor for the judge. He/she will take that recommendation to make a decision. Once the decree is ordered, there is another opportunity for the absent parent to appeal. It is for 30 days and the absent parent can appeal to another district court even if he has not appeared at any of the local hearings. Talk about lattitude!!

  In our case we greased a few palms to speed all this up. The judge gave 4 opportunites to the ex to appear. He declined all opps but the ex MIL  tried to cause trouble and was caught in so many lies the judge refused her in court. About 3 weeks into this our lawyer informed us the judge would decide in our favor but that he had to give it some time. I assume so that everything looked on the up and up. 6 weeks after starting the proceedings we received results in our favor.  In the meantime, we were approved for an interview date at the embassy. I know it was a risk  to schedule an interview but time was running short on the expiration date , so it was a chance we took. I felt confident we could settle the custody issue before the interview. If the court took a little longer we could always reschedule. As it turned out, there was no need to. We had the court document 10 days before the interview. WHEW!!! However we had one more issue. As usual, at the end of the document it said the ex had till the first week in august to appeal.  Our concern was, will this matter at the interview? well, the other day was our interview and it wasn't mentioned and now we have the visa for my fiance to travel!!!!!

 I would advise anyone that has a fiance with a child to take care of the custody issue well in advance of attempting to get an interview at the embassy. It's just not customary for that issue to be addressed in court when a divorce happens. Remember , when the court rules, it means the absent parent loses all parental rights.

My fiance and I feel like a huge weight has been lifted. She and her son will come Aug. 6th. About 3 weeks ago, my fiance reserved tickets on Aerosvit to travel here. Apparently they can do this without paying in advance, however, they must be purchsed at least 6 days before travel. She reserved only one way tickets. I have a question. To enter the U.S.A. on a fiance visa, is it required she have round trip tickets?  I will ask this in anothe rthread to just in case not everyone sees it here.

 

[BC]

Happy to hear you got it sorted out the legit way.  Better than worrying for years that something may 'happen' at any time and worrying every time you cross a border.

Not taking the custody issue into account early on in a relationship is a big mistake.

[START2]

Thank you. I was not aware of the rules before we started. it was a big ordeal. Ukr.'s like to keep their private life private and going through the courts, many people must get involved. it was rather humbling for her, but we realized long ago we belonged together and I'm sure she'd walk through fire for me as i would for her. I have seen that when a UW/RM truly give you their heart. there are no boundries to what they'll do for you. They will protect that relationship with a fierceness. Yes, they demand much, but look at the rewards.

[BC]

I'm sure the positive traits you mention are more specific to  your relationship than in general.

Don't forget the ordeal you went through together and your words here too quickly... Carry them with you over the threshold.

Enjoy.

[Jet]

Congradulations on all working out well with the court and the interview

One way tickets are no problem for people travelling on "K" visas, they expect the traveller is going to stay .

[START2]

Jet.  Thanks. The court was the lengthy part but all is cool now. The interview was a breeze. They asked her how we met even though they had that info already. She said through mutual friends. then they asked how often we communicate, and we really do talk everyday on the phone and she had those phone records. That was it . She was in and out of there in a about 90 mins. I'm happy now that we jumped the gun on a few things so need need to look back. 

[START2]

My fiancee will be here on 4 august. Will she receive the I-94 on the plane and have to fill it out there? What info is on it. I saw where they must stamp or staple something like this to the passport as well or did I read that wrong? Can i download this form  and send it to her to show her how to do it? I am aware she must have this before leaving customs. Correct? Also before leaving, what else should we check for to make sure we have it all? If we don't see it, can we request it before we leave customs/immigration? We'll be coming through JFK. Also, those of you who met your fiance's in the airport, say at Aerosvit at JFK,where did you wait for her? Any land marks to look for? Thanks.

[START2]

My fiancee will be here on 4 august. Will she receive the I-94 on the plane and have to fill it out there? What info is on it. I saw where they must stamp or staple something like this to the passport as well or did I read that wrong? Can i download this form  and send it to her to show her how to do it? I am aware she must have this before leaving customs. Correct? Also before leaving, what else should we check for to make sure we have it all? If we don't see it, can we request it before we leave customs/immigration? We'll be coming through JFK. Also, those of you who met your fiance's in the airport, say at Aerosvit at JFK,where did you wait for her? Any land marks to look for? Thanks.